Share

Facebook

Tweet

Pinterest

Email

On Friday we talked about the small cars that Chevrolet is bringing to the SEMA show in Las Vegas. The company will also section off some its display for its do-it-yourself-inspired Shop Talk presentation.

The Shop Talk display will feature four garage bays, each demonstrating a different part of Chevy's performance division. The company is building on the success of last year's engine-building demonstration.

The first garage bay will feature Chevy's Crate Powertrain Systems. Show goers will see Chevy Performance engines, transmission and controllers, as well as a new powertrain installed on an open chassis of a 1988 Chevy Monte Carlo. The crate engines packages will now come under one part number including engine, trans and controllers to simplify ordering.

The second bay will be dedicated to Chevy performance parts and accessories other than the crate engines. New Camaro ZL1 and 1LE performance upgrades will be available, for both V6 and V8 trims of lower models. A selection of interior and exterior visual upgrades will be displayed as well. Technicians will be on hand installing the parts and answering questions.

The third garage will show off the Chevy Sonic performance parts we learned about on Friday. These consist mostly of bolt-on modifications such as suspension, brakes and wheels, and other Z-Spec upgrades. An Inferno Orange Metallic Sonic will be the guinea pig.

The last bay will be dedicated to building a crate engine. Technicians will be putting together LS7 and LS9 engines, showing the steps customers can take if they choose the Engine Build Experience option when ordering a Camaro or Corvette.

GM VP Jim Campbell was confident the display will inspire some shade-tree mechanics.

“Chevrolet Performance is the direct line from the factory for performance and personalization parts and the SEMA Show gives us the chance to show everything our engineers have been working on,” said Campbell. “From Sonic to Cruze, to Camaro, Corvette and Silverado, we offer more parts and accessories than anyone in the aftermarket.”

In case attendees need a bit more motivation, a matte blue Chevy Malibu Turbo Performance concept will strut its stuff near the garage. This could be the most exciting Malibu we've seen from the company in recent memory. It gets a medium-height rear wing and a body kit in the same matte blue. The fog lamps and grilles are customized as are the taillight bezels. Night Rider chrome wheels sit at the corners, wrapped in Pirelli PZero tires.

The engine of the “Heroic Blue” Malibu is unchanged, making 259 hp, leading to a sprint time of 6.3 seconds to 60 mph. The suspension is fortified with a concept HiPer Strut front suspension and rear springs, as well as six-piston front brakes and cross-drilled rotors.

Come back next week for the rest of Chevy's plans for SEMA, which include a pro race car driver and some nostalgia for the classic bowtie.

The Chevy Malibu Turbo Performance concept will be on display near the Shop Talk area at SEMA in Las Vegas.

Engine Build Experience customers build their engine with an experienced skilled engine builder at the Performance Build Center in Wixom, Mich. Here a professional engine builder inspects a piston with a Build Experience Customer